Washington, Sept 24 : A US Senate panel has reportedly cleared the Indo-US Nuke deal with an overwhelming 19-2 vote. This has been described as a key hurdle cleared in the US ahead of the finalization of the deal, much awaited in India as the US goes to Presidential poll in November.

The brief hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday included just one amendment. A proposal by Sen. Russ Feingold, Wisconsin Democrat, to toughen restrictions on selling India the technology to reprocess nuclear fuel was defeated on a 15-4 vote.

Islamabad, Sept 24 : If Pakistan intelligence officials are to be believed, the country’s security forces shot down a suspected US military drone close to the Afghan border last night. If true, it would be the first US pilot-less aircraft brought down by Pakistan.

The aircraft was reportedly hit at the village of Jalal Khel in South Waziristan after it made several rounds of the area for several hours. Wreckage was strewn on the ground, said the Pakistan intelligence sources.

New York - Investment banking firm Goldman Sachs Group Inc gained the potentially influential support of legendary investor Warren Buffett late Tuesday.

The announcement that Buffett's firm, Berkshire Hathaway Inc, would buy a 5-billion-dollar stake in Goldman Sachs comes as the investment banking firm is converting itself to a normal bank holding company, a decision reached this week to obtain greater access to loans from the US Federal Reserve. The conversion will place Goldman Sachs under greater government scrutiny.

Washington - The Federal Bureau of Investigation is examining possible criminal activity at 26 companies including recent bailout recipients Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and American International Group Inc (AIG), according to media reports.

Major investment bank Lehman Brothers, which declared bankruptcy last week, is also on the list of firms in the FBI's probe of accounting and other possible irregularities, the Bloomberg financial news agency reported late Tuesday, citing a senior law enforcement official.

Singapore - Banks in Singapore that sold structured products linked to the collapsed US investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc have been asked to update investors on how much money they would get back, the Monetary Authority of Singapore said Wednesday.

The request was made after it was learned that investors who bought HSBC Holdings PLC's Lehman-linked Minibond Series and DBS Group Holdings Ltd's High Notes 
5 could end up losing all their capital.

Washington - A US Senate committee on Tuesday approved the White House's plan for selling nuclear technology and material to India, bringing the agreement one step closer to passage.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 19-2 to approve the nuclear cooperation agreement, but the deal still faces challenges in the House of Representatives and is confronting a closing window of opportunity for passage as Congress nears recess ahead of the November 4 general elections.